RJ's Best Friend
by Wandergirl108
Summary: Based on MY Red John - my OC Red John - and his followers, this is the story of his "Darling Black Dove". Warning to those reading my series: This adjacent to the series contains MAJOR spoilers.
1. The Monster Lover

Once upon a time, there was a girl. She wasn't a particularly special girl; in fact, in most ways, she was very ordinary. There was one thing about her that was very unusual, even unheard of, though: she loved monsters.

It was her life's dream to meet a real monster. Whenever stories of a monster in the closet or under the bed reached her ears, she eagerly joined her friends in the search, not because she wanted to "kill" it, but because she wanted to meet one.

No one could understand her strange attraction to beasts; she herself had no explanation for it. Still, her parents decided that it was an ultimately harmless idiosyncrasy, and that she'd outgrow it when she grew up and realized monsters weren't real. In the meantime, they let her have her fun; what was the harm?

Then, when the girl was ten years old, burglars broke into her home and killed her parents. She managed to escape them by hiding in her closet, but she was alone.

Of course, this was a traumatizing event for the girl, and the loss of her parents broke her heart. There was one thing about it that she salvaged, though: it was that night that she realized that monsters were real, and what they really looked like. She learned, that night, that monsters - _real_ monsters - didn't have scales or fur; they weren't covered in slime; they didn't have horns, fangs, or claws…no; monsters - real, _true_monsters - were people. And so it was that, even though her heart broke with the death of her parents, the girl's lifelong dream of meeting a monster was revived, and she pursued it with renewed eagerness.

She went into foster care, was eventually adopted, and her adopted parents did their best to raise her well, but to no avail; she wanted to be with monsters. She sought out the worst-reputed people in her neighborhood and spent as much time with them as she could manage. When she reached ninth grade, she dropped out of school and ran away, joining a local gang. She became addicted to heroin, allowed herself to be abused by local drug dealers, and was ultimately left with not a penny to her name…and yet, she believed she was happy. She believed that she was living out her dream of being with monsters.

Then, one day, when she was twenty-six years old and out wandering the streets, she saw him.

He was a young man, younger than her, and clearly very well-to-do; he was clean cut, _very_ handsome, and had an air about him that suggested that he was used to money and power…and the moment she looked in his eyes, she knew: he was a real monster. She could see it right away; there was a bottomless darkness in his eyes, a boundless evil that he practically emanated.

In that moment, she knew her life was a lie. The people she had allied herself with weren't real monsters, weren't truly evil; no, they were just very sad, very broken, or both. They were nothing. This man, however…he was everything she had ever dreamed of.

She had to speak to him, even if it was the last thing she would ever do. She approached him; she had nothing to lose, after all.

The man - whom she didn't at all know - then surprised her by doing something that was entirely the opposite of what she would have expected of the monster she somehow intuitively knew him to be: he took her in.

He gave her a second chance at life. He gave her a home, helped her get clean, got her back on track with her education…he gave her everything she had lost or given up, and what was more, he was kind to her; in fact, he became the closest thing to a father she ever had, even more so than her birth father had been (which was saying something).

This went on for years, and she started worrying that she'd made a mistake, that maybe he wasn't evil, after all. Then, once she had gotten as far in her education as she could go without making a decision about what she wanted to do with her life, he came to her, sad and forlorn, and told her to sit down; that he had a terrible secret that he needed to tell her.

Even before he told her, she knew it would be that he was a monster. She hadn't exactly predicted that he would be the infamous Red John, but the revelation didn't surprise her. He didn't seem to understand her, though, and he spun her a web of being in a symbiotic relationship with a demon and being determined to save the world. She knew every word of it was a lie, and that he _was_ the demon he claimed to be possessed by. Still, she also knew that he would kill her without a second thought if he feared she was a liability, and that if he knew that _she_ knew what he really was without realizing that she wouldn't turn on him for it - that she actually _loved_ him for it - the potential for misunderstanding could prove fatal to her. So, she decided to play along, to pretend to believe his story.

When he started bringing in more and more people, forming a circle of friends that only grew, it was she who encouraged his other friends' belief in his ridiculous story, telling how he'd helped her and how she believed in him.

What was more, when she decided what she wanted to do with her life, she decided to commit herself to him ultimately: she decided to plant herself right in the middle of the criminal justice system. She did it partly to punish those idiots like the ones who had killed her parents and to whom she had given her whole life, the ones who were a disgrace to the name of evil; and, also, she was the first of Red John's allies in the criminal justice system to start throwing a wrench in the investigation into him.

Things have gone up and down for her since then, but she is, and will always be, the most trusted and dangerous of all of Red John's friends, for, unlike the rest of them, she knows exactly what he is…and what's more, she loves him for it.

This woman's name is Madeline Hightower - or, in Red John's circle, his "Darling Black Dove". How can that be? The following chapters are what you _didn't_ see of her in Season 3…


	2. Red Gold Aftermath

~This scene takes place right after "Red Gold" from season 3.

~X~

"RJ."

Red John turned to face her, smiling his fake, warm smile that she could see right through. "My Darling," he greeted her. His smile widened to be slightly more sincere as he added, "That was well played."

She smiled back, not needing to ask what he was talking about. "Thanks," she said.

He smiled again, then turned back to face the monitors on which he always watched the inner workings of the CBI during his spare time. "What's more, it resulted in something that was very…revealing," he said slowly. He glanced back at her, gestured to his monitor, and added, "See for yourself."

Hightower stepped forward and watched as Red John played back a conversation between Jane and Lisbon. It had clearly taken place right after she had thanked Lisbon for her help with taking care of her kids, and she watched as Lisbon questioned Jane about how he had enjoyed working a case with Hightower instead. Hightower watched as Jane called her "interesting" and "dynamic" and said that he felt they'd had "a real connection".

She laughed. "Exactly what she _didn't_ want to hear," she commented.

Red John chuckled in agreement but held up a hand to stop her from saying any more. "Watch," he told her.

She watched. She watched Lisbon hit Jane with one of her crutches out of jealousy, and she watched Jane grin as Lisbon left…and she watched Jane raise his cup of tea to his lips, hesitate, lower the cup, and grin again before taking a sip.

"They're getting closer," Hightower observed, and the significance of this was not lost on her.

"Indeed," Red John said, nodding. "I have less time than I thought."

"You're going to take her soon." It wasn't a question.

He nodded. "I must. I won't have much time to cool down after Craig procures Grace for me." He turned to her. "You know what you must do, when the time comes, yes?"

She sighed. "Actually, RJ…I need to talk to you about that," she said reluctantly.

He turned to face her fully, his expression guarded. He said nothing.

She took a deep breath, then said in a rush as she exhaled, "I need you to pull the plug."

He blinked. "Pull the plug?" he repeated.

Hightower nodded. "That's what we're supposed to say, right? When we can't do something you've set us up to do? I mean, that's the phrase Angel used, right?"

"It is," he said slowly.

"Well, I can't do this," she said.

He looked at her. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to.

She sighed. "Look, RJ, my loyalty, first and foremost, is to you, you know that," she told him honestly. "I'm not even objecting to what you're gonna do to Agent Lisbon. She and Jane are close; you hurt her, you hurt him. I get that, and I'm all for making Jane's life hell, you know that…but I can't be part of it. Not after…"

It was his turn to sigh. "You feel guilty," he said. It wasn't a question.

She nodded. And she did. She wasn't heartless, nor was she pure evil like the pseudo-man who stood before her. "Lisbon has been a good friend to me, especially today," she said. "I just…again, I'm not objecting to what you're going to do - you do what you gotta do, and I'm behind you all the way. I just don't think I can be part of it when it happens. I don't think I'll be able to sit back and pretend to know less than I know, and I really don't think I'll have the heart - or lack thereof - to make things even harder for Jane when you take her."

Red John smiled briefly at her words about needing a lack of heart to play the part she would be expected to play, but the expression didn't quite meet his eyes. Those eyes - those dark, gray eyes she could read better than he knew she could - were guarded, cold…and it wasn't the evil, wonderful cold she normally saw there. He wasn't sure how to take her announcement.

"I'm not asking much of you," he finally said.

She sighed again. "I know that, RJ," she said, "but I can't be part of it. I need out. I'm worried that I'd be a liability if I'm still around when it happens, and…I'd rather die than be a liability to you." She allowed some, if not all, of the reverence and love she felt for him to show in her expression as she went on, "RJ, I owe you my life. When we first met, I had less than nothing; you gave me a chance at life again - you gave me _everything_. You _know_ I know that; you have to know my devotion to you and your cause is absolute. I wouldn't be asking you to pull the plug if I didn't think it would be for the best, _for your sake_."

He nodded once, his expression still guarded. "I trust you, My Darling Black Dove," he said; "I simply worry that there is no way out for you, is all."

She wanted to shout at him that she knew he didn't give a damn about her, that she knew she was nothing to him and she didn't care…but she had decided long ago that it was for the best if he didn't know just how well she knew him.

So instead, she played along.

"I'm touched that you're worried about me, RJ," she said, "but I think I know a way out."

He looked at her for a minute. She met his eyes steadily, so she saw the moment understanding struck him.

"My pet Todd," he said.

She nodded.

He gave her a twisted smile. "You'd really take the fall for that, just to ensure that you wouldn't run the risk of ruining my plans?"

"Well, I _was_ the one who set him 'burning bright'," she said, smiling back and making air quotes around the words "burning bright".

He laughed appreciatively at her reference to the joke. Most people would only hear a warm, friendly laugh, but she could hear the echos of the cold monster he really was behind the sound…and even though they were only echos, she wished she could listen to that sound forever. _A real monster…_

She smiled at him. When he was done laughing, she continued, "So yes, I'd be more than happy to take the fall for it."

"My Darling, I'm touched by your offer, but if you took responsibility for your actions, you'd be stuck in jail for the rest of your life," he pointed out. "You'd be a killer, like me…"

"Oh, RJ, I could never come close to being anything like you," she teased, smiling at him. "Besides, I think there's a way to keep that part from happening."

"I hope so, My Darling," he said. "After all, I'd hate for you to have to be separated from your children; I know how much you love them…"

"That's not my concern," she said, though the fact was that, of the two of them, _he_ was the one who didn't care so much about that, not her. "I mean, that would be bad enough, but the really bad thing about going to jail would be that I wouldn't be much use to you there."

He smiled at her, and she wished, for about the trillionth time, that she could tell him just how devoted to him she was…that she would never, ever turn from him, no matter what, because she knew what he really was, and she loved him…_god_, she loved him…

It was true that she had married another man; Red John had encouraged her to do so. The marriage had gone bad lately, but the truth was, her heart had never really been in it; no, her heart belonged to one person and one person alone: the monster who stood before her now…

"I'll make sure the right words are whispered in the right ears," he said, drawing her from her reverie back to the present. "J.J. will be given very good cause to suspect you."

"What will you do?" she asked.

"I'll have some other friends spread a rumor about you and one of my pet's victims," he replied. "Rumor will say…you were having an affair with one of them. That deputy, Officer Howard."

"Officer Howard?" Hightower repeated, raising her eyebrows at Red John in spite of herself. "You're going to make Agent Laroche think I was sleeping with him? I barely even knew him at all!"

Red John smiled at her. "The words will come from a _very reliable source_," he assured her. "You will, of course, admit it - but _reluctantly_, only after significant evidence is compiled against you…and above all else, you will _not_ admit that it was in fact you who killed my pet Todd."

Hightower smiled; she knew where he was going with this. "You're gonna make Jane be the one to confront me, aren't you?" she said, making it more a statement than a question. They both knew that Jane was pursuing his own, secret line of investigation into the death of Todd Johnson, and that he intended to be the one to corner the culprit in the hopes that that person would lead him to Red John.

Red John's smile was sinister, and Hightower reveled in it, though she was careful to show no indication of that fact. "It should be a simple matter for you to convince him of your innocence, and that it would be useful to him if people falsely suspect you," he said.

Hightower laughed. "You really think he'd be that gullible?" she asked him. "I mean, yeah, he's a moron, but I don't think even he could be that naive…"

"There's only one way to find out, is there not, My Darling Black Dove?" Red John asked, smiling.

"I guess there is," she admitted with a smile.

He tilted his head. "Tell me," he said thoughtfully; "how far are you willing to go to get out?"

"What do you want me to do?" she asked readily.

He told her. She agreed without a moment's hesitation. Killing for RJ's cause really wasn't going to be something she'd ever lose any sleep over.

Signing Lisbon's death warrant, on the other hand…that, she might lose a little sleep over. After all, despite Red John's insistence that Lisbon's death wasn't a guarantee, Hightower knew that if Jane was stupid enough to fall for the scheme she and Red John had planned to get her out, there was no way he'd ever save his friend, and hers…


	3. Red Queen Aftermath

~This scene takes place immediately after "Red Queen" from season 3.

~X~

Hightower walked into Red John's home, free from the burden she would have had to bear had she stayed with the CBI long enough to see him take Lisbon.

"Hey, RJ," she greeted him.

"Ah, My Darling, hello," he greeted her in reply, standing up and turning away from the monitors he spent all his free time in front of.

They faced each other for a minute.

"So…" Hightower finally said. "That went…er…better than expected…"

"Indeed it did," he said.

They were both silent again for another minute. Then, at the same time, they both burst out into hysterical laughter.

Through her hysterics, Hightower stumbled over to Red John, and they leaned on each other for several minutes, both laughing their heads off. Neither of them could help it; Jane had been so moronically gullible it was absurd!

"Ohh," Hightower finally gasped, getting herself under control and straightening, "that was _hilarious_! He's so _stupid_!" She looked up to meet Red John's gaze. "Really, RJ, how could anyone _possibly_ be that _stupid_?"

"I know not, My Darling Black Dove," he replied, grinning with mirth. "I myself was surprised at his idiocy."

Hightower shook her head, still grinning. "That was too easy," she said.

"'Easy'?" he repeated, raising an eyebrow at her. "I would call what happened a lot of things, but 'easy' would not be one of them. You were anything _but_ 'easy' on him."

"I meant he's too easy to fool," Hightower bantered.

"And I would have to agree with _that_," Red John replied, grinning again. "Really; you played the 'single mom' card to get him to let his guard down, disarmed him, knocked him to the floor, held a gun to his face with murder in your eyes, and yet, somehow, you still managed to convince him that you were on _his_ side!" By the time he was finished, his voice was once again a howl of mirth.

She grinned back at him. "It was crazy," she said. "I don't really even know how I did it."

"Well, My Darling, I am impressed, whatever the case," Red John told her.

She smiled at him for a minute, then sobered as she went on, "I'd stay here with you, but-"

"Oh, no need to explain!" he assured her, holding up a hand to stop her words. "I understand perfectly. You stay with your children, where you told My Foolish Old Friend you'd stay. It's better that way, for everyone involved."

She nodded. "Thank you, RJ," she said sincerely.

"You're quite welcome, My Darling Black Dove," he replied, "and well played. Very well played indeed."

She nodded again, turned to go…then stopped and turned back to him as something occurred to her.

"Jane's still going to be chasing around whoever killed Todd, since he thinks it wasn't me," she said.

"Indeed he will, the fool," Red John agreed, "and that could prove useful in the future."

She smiled at him. "You always know how to make things work out in your favor, don't you?" she said, making it more of a statement than a question.

He smiled back. "I do try," he replied.

She smiled and nodded at him again, they exchanged goodbyes, and Hightower went into her self-induced exile.

Better than being a liability to the monster she loved.


	4. Just Before Strawberries and Cream

~This scene takes place shortly before "Strawberries and Cream", the season 3 finale.

~X~

Hightower entered Red John's home with Craig O'Laughlin in tow. He'd asked her to come with him - to support him - but if he thought she was going to support his decision, he had something else coming.

"RJ," she called as she walked into Red John's surveillance room with the disgrace silently following her, allowing her tone to alert Red John to the fact that this wasn't just a friendly visit.

As always, he stood and turned to face her, though it took less than a second for his eyes to find Craig lurking behind her and register the shame on Craig's face.

"Our friend Craig here has a little problem," Hightower told Red John, her tone betraying her disgust.

As Craig stepped forward, utterly shamefaced, Red John said, "No."

The icy malice in his tone washed over Hightower, filling her with pleasure, though she was careful not to show it.

Craig sighed heavily. "RJ-" he began.

"No," Red John repeated coldly. "Don't say it."

"Oh, he's gonna say it," Hightower muttered, giving Craig the stank eye.

"RJ, I'm sorry, but I need you to pull the plug," Craig said in a rush.

Red John was silent for a minute. He radiated a cold fury, and his glare was so lethal, Hightower marveled that Craig didn't just drop dead where he stood.

"Why?" Red John finally asked, his word like a frozen dagger shot from a gun aimed at Craig's heart.

Craig cringed, and Hightower half-expected him to change his mind right then and there; sadly, he didn't.

"Because I can't do it," was Craig's answer, and though his manner was ashamed and intimidated, his voice was strong and sure. "I can't let you hurt her."

"Why?" Red John asked again, even more dangerously.

Craig sighed again. "Like Angel before me, I've fallen for the one you sent me to seduce," he answered, somehow managing to meet Red John's icy gaze. "I love Grace; I really, truly, genuinely love her. I can't be part of her death. I can't let you kill her. I just can't."

"The Angel Plague," Hightower muttered, annoyed. "Why don't we just call it that and be done with it?"

It was a mark of how much of a wrench Craig's announcement had thrown in Red John's plans that Red John completely ignored her comment.

"We've been preparing for this for months," Red John said coldly.

"Yes, I know-"

"Do you have any idea how hard it has been not to feed my demon for all this time?" Red John asked coldly, speaking over Craig.

"No, of course I-"

"I haven't fed in nearly a year!" Red John snarled, and Hightower watched as the monster he truly was reared its (in her opinion) beautiful head. "I've been patient, telling this…this _thing_ I have to live with that it would feed soon, and now, mere days before the time I've promised to sate it, you tell me I have to completely cancel my plan?"

"I can't do it," Craig said firmly. "I'm sorry, RJ, I really am, but I can't do it. The way it is now, if you tried to do something to her while I was there…" He trailed off.

"Would you try to stop me?" Red John asked, his tone so dangerous and cold Hightower was very, very glad it wasn't directed at her, no matter how much she appreciated Red John's evil.

Craig sighed, looked at the floor for a minute, then raised his eyes back to Red John and replied, "I might. Try, that is. I know I wouldn't be able to, but I might try, if put in a situation where I'd have to do that or watch her die."

"I'm not asking you to watch," Red John pointed out.

"Just knowing would be enough," Craig replied, "and I can't do it."

Red John's hands slowly, dangerously curled into fists.

"Look, RJ, I really am sorry!" Craig went on, his tone pleading with Red John to understand. "I owe you everything, same as the rest of us! Same as Angel, and same as Dove here!" He gestured to Hightower. "I just…I just can't do this. I would if I could - I really would - but I just can't. I need out. I can't do this to her."

"RJ, if I may, I think I have an idea," Hightower suddenly spoke up as something occurred to her.

Red John turned to her and nodded slightly. "Go on," he said coldly.

She took a breath, quickly rearranging her thought to play along with Red John's lies. "That demon you live with…it doesn't only feed on death, right?" she asked. "Doesn't it feed on chaos, too?"

Red John nodded slightly again. "It does."

Hightower allowed herself a smile at the small stroke of brilliance she'd had. "Well, it occurs to me that it would cause quite a stir if everyone in the CBI found out that Craig here really worked for you," she said.

Red John tilted his head, his curiosity piqued. "Go on," he said, his tone less cold than it had been. "What are you suggesting, My Darling Black Dove?"

Hightower's smile widened slightly. "I'm suggesting that Craig here take the same way out that I did," she replied.

Red John thought for a minute…then, a smile to match Hightower's spread across his face. "My pet Todd," he said with realization.

She nodded, grinning. "Jane still thinks the 'real' killer is out there," she said.

Craig turned to Hightower. "You want me to take the fall for what you did?" he asked, surprised.

"Well, personally I want RJ to be able to cause as much mayhem as possible, but given that you're getting cold feet when it comes to letting that mayhem come in the form of Agent Van Pelt's death, yes, I want you to 'take the fall for it'," Hightower replied.

Instead of getting indignant, Craig smiled. "I'm on that list, aren't I?" he asked, his tone making it more of a statement than a question. "The one Jane's so eager to get his hands on?"

Red John nodded. "You are," he answered for Hightower.

"Yeah, same as Bertram and Brenda and me," Hightower said. Then she smiled and added, "Kind of ironic that there's only one person on that list who _isn't_ one of us, since Jane thinks there's only one person who _is_."

"Yeah, especially considering he thinks that 'one person' _isn't_ you," Craig commented, his own smile widening. "I mean, not only did you kill Todd, you were the _first_ of us."

Hightower grinned back and nodded.

"So it's agreed," Red John said, smiling now himself. "Craig, you'll take my pet Todd's death as the way out of your situation, the same as My Darling Black Dove did."

"Only you'll _really_ be held accountable for it," Hightower added.

Craig nodded. "Done," he said.

Red John turned to Hightower. "You'll have to play a part in this," he said.

She nodded. "Of course," she said without hesitation; "I'd be more than happy to."

He turned back to Craig, his smile fading, though Hightower knew it was purely an act. "The only problem with this, my friend, is that I don't know if I'll be able to get you out of this situation alive…" he said with feigned reluctance that Craig bought readily.

"That's no problem at all," Craig said, lifting his chin proudly. "I'll go down the same way Dumar did: fighting." He turned to Hightower. "Or, at least, _pretending_ to fight," he amended.

She nodded.

Then he turned back to Red John and added, "After all, I'd rather die than be a liability to you."

Red John nodded too, then turned away from both of them to look at the large screen that was one of the many he used to keep track of the inner workings of the CBI, and Hightower could almost hear the wheels in his head turn as he said, more to himself than to either of them, "The potential for absolute chaos here is almost infinite…"

Hightower allowed herself a smile, since neither Craig nor Red John was looking at her. Red John was _so_ evil…

~X~

~I think I've said enough to make my point. I hope you enjoyed this little backstory…It's only the beginning of an epic worthy of my RJ.


End file.
